A new study suggests high school and middle school students are drawn to e-cigarettes by curiosity, the flavors, and the friends who are using them.
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More than one in six high school students – 16 percent – used e-cigarettes in 2015, and youths say the reasons are low cost and an attempt to quit smoking cigarettes, according to Yale research.
“Our findings show that youth who report first trying e-cigarettes because they can be used anywhere or to quit smoking regular cigarettes were more likely to continue e-cigarette use 6 months later, and youth who said they tried e-cigarettes because of low cost were using e-cigarettes on more days 6 months later”.
The low cost of the devices and the promise they can help teens quit smoking tobacco are the two strong predictors of continued use, said senior researcher Suchitra Krishnan-Sarin. The study also noted that those teenagers who took up the device in order to quit smoking tobacco were nearly 14 times more likely to continue using the vaping devices than those teenagers who did not try the device for this reason.
Young people try electronic cigarettes out of curiosity about the devices and alluring flavours that range from cotton candy to pizza, but keep vaping due to their low cost, according to a new study.
Makers of the “vaping” devices launched a flood of new products in the United States ahead of new federal regulations, taking effect on Monday, that require companies to submit e-cigarettes for government approval before marketing them, according to company officials and industry experts.
The researchers also found out that these vaping devices did not help much in assisting the teenagers in quitting cigarettes.
“For example, we found cost was an issue”, she said. “Increasing the cost of e-cigarettes is something that could reduce use of e-cigarettes in this young age group”. Youth initiating e-cigarettes at a younger age, or those who were current traditional smokers were also more likely to continue using e-cigarettes.
“Despite recommendations from the American Lung Association and others, the final rule did not ban flavorings as they have in ordinary cigarettes”, Edelman said.
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Yale researchers are now analyzing evidence from the third longitudinal study of the same group completed in 2015.
